Analysis and design of supercontinuum pulse generation in a single-mode optical fiber

We present an analysis and describe the design of supercontinuum (SC) pulse generation in a single-mode optical fiber. SC generation with a dispersion-decreasing fiber with a convex dispersion profile is contrasted with other approaches to obtaining conditions for generating a flat, broadened spectrum, We present general criteria for SC generation by introducing normalized parameters that allow the shape of the SC spectrum to be invariant for several SC-generating fibers and optical pump pulses. Based on these results, we designed a SC fiber and experimentally generated SC pulses that were in good agreement with theory. (C) 2001 Optical Society of America.